1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to telecommunications systems.
More particularly, the present invention relates to an advanced intelligent network system for facilitating consumer-initiated business solicitation.
2. Background of the Invention
Recent advances in telecommunications systems, e.g., voicemail, automated call processing and answering machines, allow communications between parties even when one of the parties is not available. Such communications are not performed in real-time and cannot provide assurance that the absent party actually receives the communication.
When a consumer urgently needs to contact a business or other concern, on a real-time basis, a voicemail system is usually the last thing he or she wants to hear. Usually, one of several outcomes occurs: (1) Consumer hangs up, attempts a call to another business (result: consumer unhappy, business loses potential customer); (2) Consumer leaves a message, consumer waits for a response that is not returned in a timely fashion, consumer then calls another business (result: consumer very unhappy, business loses potential customer, business loses consumer's friends as potential customers as well); (3) Consumer leaves message, waits for response, gets response only to find out business can't solve problem presented (result: customer unhappy, business wastes time where no potential for customer existed); or (4) Consumer leaves a message, gets a prompt and helpful response (both consumer and business are happy). A service providing assurance to consumers that they will be able to speak with a live staff member at a business is needed for more efficient communications.
Another problem faced by consumers today is locating the “right” business, i.e., one that can meet the consumer's requirements. In the current art, consumers select service providers based on word-of-mouth recommendations, advertising, or through random selection from a directory service such as the “Yellow Pages” published by telephone service providers. With the exception of the word-of-mouth method, there is limited assurance that the service provider selected can meet the consumer's requirements. Moreover, with any of these selection methods, the consumer has no assurance that the service provider they choose will be available to serve that consumer when the requirement arises and within the consumer's specific constraints. A service providing assurance that consumers will be put in contact with such a service provider is needed for more efficient communications.
One way to provide the desired service is to employ a large staff to screen consumer calls, locate appropriate service providers, ensure that the service provider selected is available and coordinate contact between the parties. The consumer would be shielded from the annoyance of having to make multiple phone calls to locate even a single service provider. However, such a service would be costly and would be subject to the same problems of attempting calls to service providers that use answering machines, do not answer the call or are unable to provide the requested service. In addition, if the service's staff are all busy when the consumer calls, the consumer is placed on hold, must call back later or leave a message.